Interview: Daire O'Brien: Sofa so sensational for Aussie import

Garry Brown, the general manager of Harvey Normans Irish operation, will continue to voice approval of the home furnishing chains growth plans

YOU may not have a clue what Garry Brown looks like, but you certainly know what he sounds like.

Hint: “Sennnnsationallll!” Still not twigged? Sledgehammer hint: “Go, Harvey, goooo!” Yes, the picture that adorns this page is none other than the voice of Harvey Norman himself. Brown’s stentorian voice-overs have become the stuff of advertising legend, turning Harvey Norman into a national institution and an affront to the eardrums.

Brown — gnomish, yet dashing — loves the attention. “I get into a taxi and when I start to speak the drivers say, ‘Are you . . .?’ Next thing they have their mobiles out and are asking me to talk to their kids.”

Brown, the general manager of the sofas-to-laptops retailer is clutching a cup of coffee in the company’s 60,000-sq-ft outlet in Swords. “Take a seat,” he guffaws, sweeping his hand over a couple of acres of interest-free leather sofas.